Curtain



0'. D. VINTON..

CURTAIN.

. (No Model.)

No. 471,321. Patented Mar. 22, 1892.

ITED STATES PATENT QFFICE.

CLARENCE D. VIN TON, OF STONEHAM, MASSACHUSETTS.

CURTAIN.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 471,321, dated March 22, 1892.

Application filed November 21, 1891. Serial No. 412,636. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CLARENCE D. VINTON, of Stoneham, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Curtains, which will, in connection with the accompanying drawings, be hereinafter fully described, and specifically defined in the appended claims.

My invention relates to curtains operated on and by spring or counterbalanced rolls; and it consists in the novel stopping device, hereinafter fully described and claimed, secured to the bottom of the curtain to prevent the same from being unduly elevated or carried up behind the roll by the force of the roll-actuating mechanism, whether a spring or counter-balance, when the detent in such mechanism is not acting to hold the roll from turning and the curtain in the desired position.

In the accompanying drawings my invention is shown as applied to acurtain operated on and by a spring-roll such as is commonly used on the windows of railway-oars, but is of course equally well adapted to curtains similarly hung and operated in other places and for other purposes.

Figure 1 is a perspective representation of a railway-car window having a curtain hung over the same and drawn down, showing my invention as applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a like representation with the curtain shown rolled up as far as it can be, with my invention in its operative position against that portion of the curtain which is wound about the roll and holding the bottom of the curtain, against the lifting force of the spring, from going higher and out of reach behind theroll. Fig. 3 is a plan of the stifiening-piece, preferably constructed of thin brass, which is inserted in the bottom portion of the curtain. Fig. 4

' is a plan of the bottom part of the curtain with the metallic stiffening-piece therein and secured in place by rows of stitches, as shown.

The upper end of the curtain A may be attached to a roll of any well-known and suitable construction secured to the window-casing B by any proper fixtures and operated by suitable springs orcounterbalancing devices to automatically raise the same, as my invention has no reference to the kind of rolls or fixtures by which the rolls are attached or devices by which the rolls are actuated.

As represented in the drawings, the lower end of curtain A is stitched between two pieces of leather 0 or other proper material constituting the curtain-bottom, which more substantial bottom-piece may have an ornamental outline on its lower edge, as shown, and in which is inserted the metallic stiffening-piece D, secured therein by stitches E, substantially as indicated in Fig. 4. The stiffening-piece D is composed of a narrow piece of flexible metal of suitable thickness and having a wider portion F in the middle, through which a curved slot G is made, as shown in Fig. 3. lVhen this stiffening-piece D is stitched between the parts 0, as indicated in Fig. 4, the rows of stitches E extend closely along the side lines of piece D and also closely along the interior line of and through slot G. The stitching being thus completed, then the material stitched is cut centrally through said curved slot within the line or stitches extending around the edges of the slot. This cut through the slot leaves the curved portion H of pieceD and its covering free to be bent outward, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, forming a stop extending perpendicularly outward from the face of the bottom piece 0, while the opposite face is left smooth, so that in its movements up and down it will not mar the window-casing or other wood-work with which it may come in contact. This stop H comes in contact with the overhead roll when the curtain is raised by force of the spring or counterbalancing devices, and thus counteracts said actuating devices and arrests the movement of the curtain and roll and prevents the former from rolling up to the extent of carrying the bottom out of reach above or behind the roll. Thus an annoying difficulty which frequently occurs in the operation of such curtains is overcome by my very simple and inexpensive device. It is obvious that a metallic piece similar to piece D might be secured to the body of the curtain and constitute the bottom without being covered, if desired.

I claim- 1. A curtain A, having a metallic stifiteningpiece D inserted in the bottom thereof and a ICO central stop I l, formed upon and consisting of a portion of said stiffening-piece, bent outward therefrom, substantially as shown, for the purpose specified.

2. In a curtain-bottom, the combination of a stiffening-piece D, having a slot G through an enlarged portion thereof, a flexible part H, and a covering 0, inclosing the stiffeningpiece, substantially as shown, for the purpose specified.

3. In a curtain-bottom, a stiffening-piece D, formed with a flexible projection ll, adapted to be bent to form a stop, as described, and a covering 0, inclosing the stifiening-piece, substantially as shown, for the purpose specified. 4. A curtain having a metallic stifieningpiece attached to the bottom thereof, said piece having a portion thereof bent outward to form a stop 11, substantially as shown, for the purpose specified.

CLARENCE D. VINTON. W'itnesses:

EUGENE IIUMPHREY, JOHN HILL. 

